Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

UK says it will simplify confusing COVID-19 travel rules

The British government says it plans to simplify rules for international travel during the coronavirus pandemic and will make an announcement Friday

Via AP news wire
Friday 17 September 2021 09:01 EDT
Britain Politics
Britain Politics (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

The British government says it plans to simplify rules for international travel during the coronavirus pandemic, with an announcement coming later Friday.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said on Twitter that he would “set out measures to simplify international travel later today in order to reduce costs, take advantage of higher levels of vaccination, and keep us all safe.”

The government is under pressure to scrap its “traffic light” system that ranks countries as red, amber or green — high, medium or low risk from the coronavirus. The categories have been criticized as unfair and confusing, and sudden changes to countries’ status have caused headaches for thousands of travelers.

At present, people coming from “red list” countries must spend 10 days in a government-approved quarantine hotel. Unvaccinated travelers from amber-list countries must self-isolate for 10 days at home, while fully vaccinated travelers need to take coronavirus tests before and after arriving in Britain.

It’s likely the government will ease the rules that require travelers to take a highly sensitive, and pricey, PCR test two days after arrival. They could be able to use a cheaper but less sensitive lateral flow test instead.

Airlines and travel businesses have complained that Britain's complicated and expensive requirements are keeping people away and hampering recovery from the pandemic. Heathrow Airport said this week that it had fallen from Europe’s busiest airport in 2019 to 10th-busiest now, behind rivals in cities such as Amsterdam, Paris and Frankfurt.

Any changes will apply to England. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland set their own policies.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in